Lanyard on a Handgun

[t4terrific]

Do any of you actually use a lanyard on a handgun? What kind of lanyard do you use? Where on your person do you attach it? How does it attach?

Thanks.

Watching The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly got me thinking about the lanyards on the Army’s pistols and wondering about real life, modern day use of handgun lanyards.

[TXAZ]

There are a couple of RCMP guys on here, they may be able to chime in but I don't think lanyards are very common anymore.

[RickB]

I've tried to shoot with a lanyard a few times, the kind that looks like a phone cord, and I might be able to adapt to it, but I'd prefer not.
I'd use one on a boat, maybe, but in the field it might be more of a hassle snagging on things.
While lanyards fell out of favor during WWII, they are widely used by the military today.

[SaxonPig]

I dig having the ring. I have several 1911s with rings, a couple Victory Model S&Ws, my Luger, British Enfield and P38 have them too. But I don't put lanyards on them. I think the only real purpose for a lanyard is weapon retention. Makes it harder for a criminal to take your handgun if it's tied to your person, and makes it easier to keep it holstered on a bouncing horse. I don't hold felons at gunpoint or ride a horse so there's no purpose for me to have one. But I do dig the look of the ring...

[johnwilliamson062]

I believe they are most practical when on horseback, over water, or receiving artillery fire. Always surprised the Enterprise crew didn't have lanyards for their phasers.

I enjoy them.

[Rob228]

I recall a CQB instructor saying something along the lines of "there are two types of people in the world; those who have a lanyard story and those who will have a lanyard story".

If you aren't kicking doors and clearing houses or riding a horse you probably don't need one. I don't do that for a living any more and I certainly don't use one anymore.

[FrankenMauser]

I have three handguns with lanyard rings.

I use none of them.

[JJ45]

The only ones I have are on military Makarov grips and a Nagant revolver I also have the respective leather lanyards but have never used them. It's a military thing for obvious reasons. Stuff gets dropped or otherwise lost in rough and tumble situations.

Jeff Cooper opined that it is an addition to the 1911 pistol that is useful. If I was out in the Amazon or some other boondock foray I would consider it.

[mk70ss]

If one is in thick brush, swampy land, on horseback, canoeing, etc. with a firearm carried on your person, it is an extremely valuable tool to prevent you from losing your gun.

[agtman]

If one is in thick brush, swampy land, on horseback, canoeing, etc. with a firearm carried on your person, it is an extremely valuable tool to prevent you from losing your gun.

Yeah, apparently what some folks are missing here is that it's the nature or type of the outdoor activity while armed that drives whether it's prudent to attach a lanyard to your revolver or auto.

Normally, if you're just plinking at the local range on a Sunday afternoon, attaching a lanyard to your EDC pistol is unnecessary and will likely result in stares and snickers because you'll look like a Wannabe Commando.

If, on the other hand, you're going to be spending extended time in the boonies hiking trails, climbing steep terrain, fishing off slippery river banks, canoeing, horse-back riding, or some combination of these or similar activities, then using a lanyard as a secondary means of retention (after your holster) makes sense.

It especially makes sense if the locale for any of these activities is remote AND might include the possibility of encountering 4- or 2-legged predators. No one wants to discover their weapon somehow got 'lost' when it's most needed.

[mete]

The 1911 had a lanyard ring on the gun AND one on the magazine !!
This was handy when in an airplane !

[JJ45]

Then again, I thought about this, if you spent any time in a rain forest or brushy woods, etc. you know that stuff like lanyards have a tendency to get hung up on everything. A lanyard connecting a sidearm to your belt and hanging from belt to holster is certain to get hung up when you least want it to.....maybe you could stuff the lanyard inside your pants

Jack OConnor advised that hanging binoculars from a saddle horn is a sure way of losing your binoculars if you are riding through trees or brush....certainly not the same but similar. Your not going to lose your pistol but in the very least, it's a nuisance.

I think the best bet for retention in that scenario is to carry a handgun in a full flap holster with a post or hook and loop fastener (not a snap) Slow to draw but everything is a trade off.

[DMK]

"there are two types of people in the world; those who have a lanyard story and those who will have a lanyard story".

I can't count how many movies I've seen where the protagonist gets in a scuffle and their handgun goes off a cliff, out a window, over the side into the lake/ocean/river, etc.

I've often wondered if there was a practical way to use one for a CCW. Probably not, but you never know if you might be the next Roger Thornhill.

[T. O'Heir]

Purpose for a lanyard is weapon retention when on a horse. A lanyard can also be setup to act as a quasi stabilizer when shooting. Ha to be just the right length though.
It's never attached to one's belt or saddle. It goes around one's shoulder like our RCMP has 'em when the guy got caught doing something he shouldn't. (Parliament Hill duty is punishment duty. Takes hours to get one's uniform and boots, perfect.)
Paracord makes a good lanyard. If the thing is getting caught on stuff, it's not tied/being worn correctly.
Not exactly something you'd want if you're trying to conceal a firearm though.

[dgludwig]

As others have pointed out, there are times and circumstances in addition to yesteryear's mounted calvary soldier that have merit for using a lanyard on a handgun in today's time. I've embarked on many two week canoe trips in the fall to fish in the Boundary Waters where you're pretty much on your own the entire time. Ensuring that your pistol is safely affixed to yourself while in the canoe or portaging and hiking over arduous terrain is a comfort.

[rodfac]

As others have pointed out, there are times and circumstances in addition to yesteryear's mounted calvary soldier that have merit for using a lanyard on a handgun in today's time. I've embarked on many two week canoe trips in the fall to fish in the Boundary Waters where you're pretty much on your own the entire time. Ensuring that your pistol is safely affixed to yourself while in the canoe or portaging and hiking over arduous terrain is a comfort.

That's been my experience up there in the Big North Woods as well. And for the same reason, my belt knife has a wrist thong that loops under my belt while in its sheath or around my wrist when in use...both are tools that you just can't afford to loose. YMMV, Rod

[Dfariswheel]

Many Special Ops people, especially SEAL's use a lanyard, and not just around water.

They use a coiled type lanyard that looks like a phone cord.
It's attached to their belt or holster, not to the body.
Attached to the body and a lanyard can be used by an attacker as a handle to wrestle you around.
The belt or holster mount will release if pulled on hard.

My buddy lives in a an area where people do a lot of river floats.
He knows people who go to certain areas on the river on a Monday morning and SCUBA dive to get all the cameras and guns lost when the boat or tube turns over in rough spots.

I know of several people who've lost expensive pistols while riding 3 and 4 wheel ATVs.
They never noticed the gun bouncing out of the holster in a bumpy area.

[tony pasley]

Yes I ride horses and yes I will use one when going into the back country.

[agtman]

I know of several people who've lost expensive pistols while riding 3 and 4 wheel ATVs. They never noticed the gun bouncing out of the holster in a bumpy area.

Yep, good point. I forgot to mention the risk of loss from riding an ATV all over the bumpy boonies. You see ATVs quite a bit now as a key form of transport in what might be called "Rough Country."

Certainly in Alaska, and the snowier regions of the lower 48, the same caution indicating that use of a lanyard is warranted applies to zipping around on snow mobiles while carrying.

[johnwilliamson062]

In the age of molded kydex and trigger guard locks people are having trouble with guns bouncing out of their holsters?
I said I enjoy them, but I meant at the range or in the safe. I can see a whole lot of things going wrong if a lanyard attached pistol bounced free while on an open cabin motor vehicle. Like it getting caught up in the tracks/wheels. I'd definitely go with a leather flap holster before a lanyard on a motor vehicle for that type of retention.

[bamaranger]

I use a lanyard when waltzing about in the boonies with my G20, and occasionally my G17 (if I carry it) when doing same. The Glock pistols have a convenient hole in the butt to use as an attachment point. I have a USGI style M9 (?) flap holster, but the lanyard is further comfort. I putt about on an ATV more than ever these days and stuff can get snatched easily from you or your ride.

I started thinking about lanyards when taking the G20 deer hunting from a climbing treestand. I've never dropped a firearm or bow from a stand, but I've dropped about everything else. Some stuff can be retrieved using a hook formed from a fish snap stringer (very handy), but some of the stuff either stays down, or you climb back down (then up) to get it. A real pain.

There are commercial lanyards available, but I made my own. Took about a 4-1/2 ft length of paracord, and a common dog snap. Tied the cord into a loop, end to end, then tied a loop using a simple overhand knot at the mid point, , to which I fitted the small ring end of the dog snap. More complicated than it sounds.
The dog snap fits through the hole in the butt of the Glock. I wear the lanyard by putting my head/shoulders through the loop, and allowing the cord to fall across my back and chest diagonally. The cord rides across my body much like an ammo bandoleer. There is enough slack in the cord to allow a draw and presentation without a hassle. I have also experimented with the cord , and tensioning the pistol with cord in a braced sitting position across my knees, and also kneeling with my walking staff. Works pretty good.

Lanyards on pistols are still common in the military. Watch a few SEAL or Spec Forces videos with handguns, you will see the commercial phone cord type lanyards.

[bamaranger]

The SIG P series have an attachment point for a lanyard on their butt as well. One of our guys had fitted a small split ring on the butt, and to that had attached a commercial lanyard.

Stuff happens. I've never lost a pistol in the boonies. But I lost 1 set of handcuffs, and one P220 mag, (separate episodes) both of which somehow got popped out of a flapped pouch on a duty rig, while busting brush and marking boundary. When I came up with the paracord lanyard, I started using it on my issue P220 pistol when busting brush. In addition, I've lost a decent Spyderco Endura , clipped to the interior of my front pocket, snatched by brush. I also lost a Gerber LST which had about a 6" length of paracord looped through the grip. The LST was deep in my rear pocket, with about an inch of the loop sticking out the top. Brush snatched that too. You get hot, tired, pre-occupied, and back at the truck........it's not there.

I found the loaded P220 mag........the rest of the stuff was gone. If you're everin AR and see a deer with a Gerber knife on a loop, a Spyderco serrated knife, or a set of handcuff's in the central TN/AL boundary area, their mine.

[kozak6]

My CZ52 came with one. I messed with it for a day, but it seemed like a major snag hazard. But the design was a little screwy. It was kind of like a really awful and short dog leash, with a hand sized loop closed with a single staple on one end, and a cheesy keychain snap on the other.

I tried it attached to a shoulder epaulet, as well as my belt. I think if I were going to use it, I'd either attach it to my belt or holster, and stuff as much of it into my holster as I could. That's probably wrong, though.

If I were concerned about retention, I'd be happy with the leather full flap holster that came with it. Seems quite secure.

[JJ45]

T.O'heir says around the shoulder like TUCO (Eli Wallach) in "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly" just snatched the lanyard off the wall looped it through the ring and over his shoulder!

No need for a holster, eh?... he sure was a good shot, though

[johnwilliamson062]

Watch a few SEAL or Spec Forces videos with handguns, you will see the commercial phone cord type lanyards.

I imagine there are times they are especially concerned about leaving identifiable equipment behind.